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How to Kill Rhubarb
How to Kill Rhubarb. Rhubarb is a plant that produces green or reddish-green stalks suitable for making pies, jams, or fruit crumbles. A relatively hardy plant, rhubarb grows quickly and is resilient even in acidic soil and direct sun. But because it grows quickly and is a relatively hardy plant, you may find that you need to kill off some or all...
Rhubarb is a plant that produces green or reddish-green stalks suitable for making pies, jams, or fruit crumbles. A relatively hardy plant, rhubarb grows quickly and is resilient even in acidic soil and direct sun. But because it grows quickly and is a relatively hardy plant, you may find that you need to kill off some or all of the rhubarb plant as it grows and begins to take over other sections of your garden.
Things You'll Need
Garden hose
Sulfur
Garden spade or shovel
Over-water the rhubarb. Over-watering leads to crown rot, which can kill off even the most stubbornly entrenched plant system.
Reduce the soil's pH. Because rhubarb grows best in slightly acidic soil, lowering the pH can create a less-than-ideal environment for the plant. Organic gardeners recommend using pure sulfur or flowers of sulfur to accomplish this.
Dig up the plant and pull up the entire root system of the rhubarb plant with a shovel or garden spade. According to RhubarbInfo.com, very old rhubarb plants can have root systems that span over 3 feet in diameter, so make sure to carefully examine the area so you do not overlook a root crown that could grow back.
Tips & Warnings
Contrary to what you might expect, pruning back the stems and leaves of a rhubarb plant will actually cause the roots to grow more quickly. If you want to kill the plant, go for the roots instead of the above-ground growth.
If you only want to kill some of the growth, expose the root system and trim the crown down to four buds. This should be done every four to five years to keep your rhubarb at a manageable size.
The roots and leaves of the rhubarb plant contain oxalic acid, and should not be consumed. The stems can have an increased amount of this compound after a frost, and should be eaten only sparingly, if at all.
